Chapter: Through Dangers Untold
The first thing that Sarah realized was that someone was holding her up. Then she heard a voice begging for her to be all right. Eyes fluttering, Sarah was finally able to open her eyes and find a relieved Jareth smiling down on her. 'He has a nice smile,' Sarah thought to herself distantly. 'Just like at the ball-,' Sarah leapt to her feet and immediately regretted it as she began to sway dangerously.
"Michu! Where is she? What happened?" Jareth came up behind her just as she began to fall and lightly held her up by each elbow.
"Its okay, Sarah, she's right here. Relax, everything's fine." Jareth said. Sarah whipped her head back and forth agitatedly and began to thrash violently, trying to find her friend.
"No! Everything is NOT fine! Where is she? What the Hell was that . . . thing?" Jareth starred at her for a moment before Michu's cold voice filled the clearing they were in.
"That was a Time Wall. It took us into the past for three hours before trying to suck us into it forever." Michu was starring into space, her eyes glazed over in memory. "It was good seeing my brother and sisters again." She whispered.
"Where did it take you?" Jareth asked curiously.
"To the final ball before the Great War." Michu whispered as she ignored the tears rolling down her cheeks. "You and Gareth were there." Jareth stiffened. "And your brothers were also there, Almanac." Almanac didn't bother to react, even if his knuckles turned white.
"What happened?" Almanac whispered after a long silence. Michu stood up suddenly, her eyes burning with fury.
"I'm going to go kill her myself!" Michu said furiously. She grabbed Sarah and pulled her to her feet roughly. "I know a short cut." She grumbled, moving off at a fast pace. Sarah hurried to catch up and grabbed Michu's arm to keep pace with her.
"Michu, do you remember what you told me?" Michu's furious eyes turned unwillingly towards Sarah's pleading ones. "Do you remember what you said about my mother?" Michu continued to glare at her.
"I don't." She said furiously. She tried to shake off her friend but Sarah's grip turned cruel as her nails buried themselves into Michu's arm.
"You said that she wasn't worth it." Sarah said, digging her heels into the ground and forcing Michu to stop. "It's not worth it Michu! I didn't become friends with a murderer!" The last part made Michu snap her arm away from Sarah, her eyes wounded.
"I killed so many people, Sarah." She said. "You don't know how many!" Jareth and Almanac backed away instinctively as the pixie suddenly became livid with fury! "I KILLED PEOPLE! DOES THAT MEAN WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS, SARAH?" Sarah reached out to grab her but Michu was gone, running down a faint path and out of sight before any of them could blink.
"Michu! Please come back!" Sarah cried, making a run to follow Michu. Jareth grabbed her arms and pulled her back onto the path. "Let me go Jareth! I have to get her!" Jareth's grip remained firm.
"Getting yourself lost in this place won't help Michu feel any better. She needs to cool off after reliving those painful memories." Jareth's surprisingly soothing voice told her. Sarah stopped struggling and twisted around to look Jareth in the eyes. He was emotionless.
"Alright." She grumbled, pulling her arms away. "But can one of you please follow her? I'm worried." Almanac touched Sarah's shoulder kindly.
"I'll go." He said. As he transformed into his raven form, nothing remained but a silky white feather. Jareth watched his friend go and then sighed heavily.
"Now it's back to square one." He said rather sarcastically. He bowed and motioned towards the path. "Shall we?" Sarah began to walk down the path, Jareth coming up behind her as they walked.
About an hour of silence passed in which no monsters leapt out at them and there was relative silence around them. Sarah was looking back the way they had come when she tripped over a fallen log!
Crying out in shock, Jareth swooped down to catch her. Looking straight into his concerned eyes, Sarah lifted herself up carefully only to wince in pain. Jareth placed her on the floor and prodded her left ankle carefully. He shook his head.
"It's broken." He said. "Damn our luck!" Sarah glared at the floor, hot tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She screamed and hit the ground beside her.
"It's just not FAIR!" She screamed to no one in particular, her hair plastered to her cheeks. When Jareth looked at her in shock at hearing those words again, a strange smile tugged at his features. Soon he was chuckling quietly, trying to suppress his amusement at a flustered Sarah.
Sarah couldn't help the grin which spread across her face or the hysterical laughter which followed it. Soon she and Jareth were laughing so hard, their sides were aching for the energy it took to keep breathing.
"I'm sorry, Sarah." Jareth finally managed to gasp between breaths. Sarah was still smiling, her tears those of mirth now rather than frustration. Sarah waved away his apology and smiled up at him.
"It's alright; things have just been making me angry lately. It's just that this was supposed to be the best birthday!" Jareth and Sarah laughed for a little longer until Jareth took Sarah into his arms and lifted her up.
"You're heavier than you look." He commented as he resumed his trek through the forest. Sarah's eyes narrowed and she looked thirsty for blood.
"That's not the best way to compliment a woman." She growled. Jareth laughed at the look on her face.
"But you're beautiful!" He covered up fairly well, considering the fact that Sarah had wanted to dunk his head into the Bog of Eternal Stench and hold him under for a good minute. Sarah arched an eyebrow, momentarily nervous when Jareth leapt over a log.
"You're not off the hook." She said. Jareth gave her a smile filled with sharp teeth (she ignored it of course).
Almanac had been flying for quite some time when he caught sight of a flash of lavender. He landed and changed back into himself quickly. He moved towards the direction he had seen Michu and blinked when he, instead, saw a rather large lake.
Beautiful hot pink flowers blossomed all around it and poplar trees rested long silver leaves against the water's placid surface. All around the lake there were little flashes of light; probably fairies visiting each other in their variously colored flower homes. Almanac moved forward carefully, not knowing where Michu was and not wanting to set anything unpleasant onto him.
"Hello." Almanac whirled around but saw nothing but dense trees behind him. He tried to figure out where the voice had come from but he just couldn't see anything stirring except for the wind. "Over here." Almanac turned to the lake and his eyes widened.
At the shore of the water sat a beautiful naked woman. Her skin was soft lavender and her eyes flashed a beautiful green in the soft sunlight. Stepping closer to her wearily, Almanac peered at his surroundings just in case there was something unpleasant lurking nearby. The woman giggled and lifted a beautiful, slender arm. That was when Almanac noticed the delicate green scales covering her wrists and palms. Her jaw and neck were also covered in rainbow green scales, shimmering against the reflection of light against the water.
"Good day to you." Almanac said politely. He didn't usually converse with mermaids; especially not ones with such long green tails and such alluring green eyes. She motioned for Almanac to join her and he couldn't help but obey her.
Before Almanac could blink, he was sitting down on the sandy shore right beside the beautiful naked mermaid. She was smiling delightedly and took his hand in hers. She put it to her heart and drew his face towards her. The next thing he knew, the mermaid was kissing him passionately, her tongue begging for entrance into his shocked mouth.
"Enough!" A poisoned voice hissed. The mermaid stopped her onslaught and turned to the voice. Michu was standing behind them, her hands balled into clenched fists and her eyes were narrowed into slits. She radiated fury. "I said enough!" She hissed again. The mermaid shook her head violently and put a possessive arm over Almanac's chest as if to say 'I saw him first!'
"Please let go of me." Almanac said as politely as he could. When the mermaid shook her head just as violently as before, Almanac peeled off the scaly arm himself and rose to his feet before she could move. She began to weep violently, no sound coming from her thin form.
"Why are you here; besides choosing to make-out with her?" Michu said with a disgusted glance at the still-weeping creature. Almanac put his hands in his pocket nervously.
"I wasn't planning on meeting her. I thought that she looked like you when I was in my raven form so I came down to get you. Unfortunately she, um, detained me." Michu gave him a disbelieving glare.
"Why did you come to get me, then? If you think I'm going back to Sarah then you've got another thing coming. She said it herself; she doesn't want to be friends with murderers." Almanac blinked and then shook his head.
"The three of us are murderers. If she associates with all of us, then what makes you think she hates you in particular?" Michu arched and eyebrow and turned her back to him furiously.
"I don't care." She muttered. Almanac was about to say something else when another thought came to him. He came up behind Michu carefully.
"This has nothing to do with what she said, does it? There's something else on your mind that's bothering you." Sarah stiffened involuntarily. "What was it that you saw?" Michu didn't move for a long moment before she turned to Almanac carefully.
"I remember going into the Time Wall." She began slowly. "And I thought I would remember that ball. But . . . ." Michu turned away, trying not to show the emotions playing within her painfully.
"You can tell me." Almanac said gently. Michu sighed and turned to him firmly.
"I can't remember it at all."
"There it is! The castle!" Sarah said excitedly as she hugged Jareth happily. Jareth didn't complain or even say anything in case Sarah noticed and drew away in disgust. Still, there was a very smug and delighted smile on his face as he made his way towards the castle gates.
A/N: Yeah, shorter than the last chapter (sorry). Thank you to Xithemonas, an anonymous reviewer, Rhiannon Faylinn, serenity, Megan, draegon_fire, terrie, Lady Sorrow, and Jenny! ^.^ You guys are the best reviewers! This fic is coming to a close, and I'm sorry to see it ending so soon. But there are still a few questions we want answered, right? What was the potion that Michu's mother used? What effect did it have on her daughter and Jareth? Will I EVER stop being so ambiguous? ^.^
Okay! The voting has been some what of a landslide but to be *fair* we'll wait for the end of the fic (even though I've already started planning a J/S fic). So far, the vote is twenty-one *gulps* to four (sorry, Megan, but it seems that you and I are just gonna have to suffer) for a J/S fic. Those of you, who want a J/M fic, speak now or forever hold your peace! This vote will continue until the end of this fic! Also, I stupidly began a new Labyrinth fic. Check it out! It's called 'Shattered Dreams'. The sequel to this fic will be starting as soon as this one is over.
The first thing that Sarah realized was that someone was holding her up. Then she heard a voice begging for her to be all right. Eyes fluttering, Sarah was finally able to open her eyes and find a relieved Jareth smiling down on her. 'He has a nice smile,' Sarah thought to herself distantly. 'Just like at the ball-,' Sarah leapt to her feet and immediately regretted it as she began to sway dangerously.
"Michu! Where is she? What happened?" Jareth came up behind her just as she began to fall and lightly held her up by each elbow.
"Its okay, Sarah, she's right here. Relax, everything's fine." Jareth said. Sarah whipped her head back and forth agitatedly and began to thrash violently, trying to find her friend.
"No! Everything is NOT fine! Where is she? What the Hell was that . . . thing?" Jareth starred at her for a moment before Michu's cold voice filled the clearing they were in.
"That was a Time Wall. It took us into the past for three hours before trying to suck us into it forever." Michu was starring into space, her eyes glazed over in memory. "It was good seeing my brother and sisters again." She whispered.
"Where did it take you?" Jareth asked curiously.
"To the final ball before the Great War." Michu whispered as she ignored the tears rolling down her cheeks. "You and Gareth were there." Jareth stiffened. "And your brothers were also there, Almanac." Almanac didn't bother to react, even if his knuckles turned white.
"What happened?" Almanac whispered after a long silence. Michu stood up suddenly, her eyes burning with fury.
"I'm going to go kill her myself!" Michu said furiously. She grabbed Sarah and pulled her to her feet roughly. "I know a short cut." She grumbled, moving off at a fast pace. Sarah hurried to catch up and grabbed Michu's arm to keep pace with her.
"Michu, do you remember what you told me?" Michu's furious eyes turned unwillingly towards Sarah's pleading ones. "Do you remember what you said about my mother?" Michu continued to glare at her.
"I don't." She said furiously. She tried to shake off her friend but Sarah's grip turned cruel as her nails buried themselves into Michu's arm.
"You said that she wasn't worth it." Sarah said, digging her heels into the ground and forcing Michu to stop. "It's not worth it Michu! I didn't become friends with a murderer!" The last part made Michu snap her arm away from Sarah, her eyes wounded.
"I killed so many people, Sarah." She said. "You don't know how many!" Jareth and Almanac backed away instinctively as the pixie suddenly became livid with fury! "I KILLED PEOPLE! DOES THAT MEAN WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS, SARAH?" Sarah reached out to grab her but Michu was gone, running down a faint path and out of sight before any of them could blink.
"Michu! Please come back!" Sarah cried, making a run to follow Michu. Jareth grabbed her arms and pulled her back onto the path. "Let me go Jareth! I have to get her!" Jareth's grip remained firm.
"Getting yourself lost in this place won't help Michu feel any better. She needs to cool off after reliving those painful memories." Jareth's surprisingly soothing voice told her. Sarah stopped struggling and twisted around to look Jareth in the eyes. He was emotionless.
"Alright." She grumbled, pulling her arms away. "But can one of you please follow her? I'm worried." Almanac touched Sarah's shoulder kindly.
"I'll go." He said. As he transformed into his raven form, nothing remained but a silky white feather. Jareth watched his friend go and then sighed heavily.
"Now it's back to square one." He said rather sarcastically. He bowed and motioned towards the path. "Shall we?" Sarah began to walk down the path, Jareth coming up behind her as they walked.
About an hour of silence passed in which no monsters leapt out at them and there was relative silence around them. Sarah was looking back the way they had come when she tripped over a fallen log!
Crying out in shock, Jareth swooped down to catch her. Looking straight into his concerned eyes, Sarah lifted herself up carefully only to wince in pain. Jareth placed her on the floor and prodded her left ankle carefully. He shook his head.
"It's broken." He said. "Damn our luck!" Sarah glared at the floor, hot tears threatening to fall from her eyes. She screamed and hit the ground beside her.
"It's just not FAIR!" She screamed to no one in particular, her hair plastered to her cheeks. When Jareth looked at her in shock at hearing those words again, a strange smile tugged at his features. Soon he was chuckling quietly, trying to suppress his amusement at a flustered Sarah.
Sarah couldn't help the grin which spread across her face or the hysterical laughter which followed it. Soon she and Jareth were laughing so hard, their sides were aching for the energy it took to keep breathing.
"I'm sorry, Sarah." Jareth finally managed to gasp between breaths. Sarah was still smiling, her tears those of mirth now rather than frustration. Sarah waved away his apology and smiled up at him.
"It's alright; things have just been making me angry lately. It's just that this was supposed to be the best birthday!" Jareth and Sarah laughed for a little longer until Jareth took Sarah into his arms and lifted her up.
"You're heavier than you look." He commented as he resumed his trek through the forest. Sarah's eyes narrowed and she looked thirsty for blood.
"That's not the best way to compliment a woman." She growled. Jareth laughed at the look on her face.
"But you're beautiful!" He covered up fairly well, considering the fact that Sarah had wanted to dunk his head into the Bog of Eternal Stench and hold him under for a good minute. Sarah arched an eyebrow, momentarily nervous when Jareth leapt over a log.
"You're not off the hook." She said. Jareth gave her a smile filled with sharp teeth (she ignored it of course).
Almanac had been flying for quite some time when he caught sight of a flash of lavender. He landed and changed back into himself quickly. He moved towards the direction he had seen Michu and blinked when he, instead, saw a rather large lake.
Beautiful hot pink flowers blossomed all around it and poplar trees rested long silver leaves against the water's placid surface. All around the lake there were little flashes of light; probably fairies visiting each other in their variously colored flower homes. Almanac moved forward carefully, not knowing where Michu was and not wanting to set anything unpleasant onto him.
"Hello." Almanac whirled around but saw nothing but dense trees behind him. He tried to figure out where the voice had come from but he just couldn't see anything stirring except for the wind. "Over here." Almanac turned to the lake and his eyes widened.
At the shore of the water sat a beautiful naked woman. Her skin was soft lavender and her eyes flashed a beautiful green in the soft sunlight. Stepping closer to her wearily, Almanac peered at his surroundings just in case there was something unpleasant lurking nearby. The woman giggled and lifted a beautiful, slender arm. That was when Almanac noticed the delicate green scales covering her wrists and palms. Her jaw and neck were also covered in rainbow green scales, shimmering against the reflection of light against the water.
"Good day to you." Almanac said politely. He didn't usually converse with mermaids; especially not ones with such long green tails and such alluring green eyes. She motioned for Almanac to join her and he couldn't help but obey her.
Before Almanac could blink, he was sitting down on the sandy shore right beside the beautiful naked mermaid. She was smiling delightedly and took his hand in hers. She put it to her heart and drew his face towards her. The next thing he knew, the mermaid was kissing him passionately, her tongue begging for entrance into his shocked mouth.
"Enough!" A poisoned voice hissed. The mermaid stopped her onslaught and turned to the voice. Michu was standing behind them, her hands balled into clenched fists and her eyes were narrowed into slits. She radiated fury. "I said enough!" She hissed again. The mermaid shook her head violently and put a possessive arm over Almanac's chest as if to say 'I saw him first!'
"Please let go of me." Almanac said as politely as he could. When the mermaid shook her head just as violently as before, Almanac peeled off the scaly arm himself and rose to his feet before she could move. She began to weep violently, no sound coming from her thin form.
"Why are you here; besides choosing to make-out with her?" Michu said with a disgusted glance at the still-weeping creature. Almanac put his hands in his pocket nervously.
"I wasn't planning on meeting her. I thought that she looked like you when I was in my raven form so I came down to get you. Unfortunately she, um, detained me." Michu gave him a disbelieving glare.
"Why did you come to get me, then? If you think I'm going back to Sarah then you've got another thing coming. She said it herself; she doesn't want to be friends with murderers." Almanac blinked and then shook his head.
"The three of us are murderers. If she associates with all of us, then what makes you think she hates you in particular?" Michu arched and eyebrow and turned her back to him furiously.
"I don't care." She muttered. Almanac was about to say something else when another thought came to him. He came up behind Michu carefully.
"This has nothing to do with what she said, does it? There's something else on your mind that's bothering you." Sarah stiffened involuntarily. "What was it that you saw?" Michu didn't move for a long moment before she turned to Almanac carefully.
"I remember going into the Time Wall." She began slowly. "And I thought I would remember that ball. But . . . ." Michu turned away, trying not to show the emotions playing within her painfully.
"You can tell me." Almanac said gently. Michu sighed and turned to him firmly.
"I can't remember it at all."
"There it is! The castle!" Sarah said excitedly as she hugged Jareth happily. Jareth didn't complain or even say anything in case Sarah noticed and drew away in disgust. Still, there was a very smug and delighted smile on his face as he made his way towards the castle gates.
A/N: Yeah, shorter than the last chapter (sorry). Thank you to Xithemonas, an anonymous reviewer, Rhiannon Faylinn, serenity, Megan, draegon_fire, terrie, Lady Sorrow, and Jenny! ^.^ You guys are the best reviewers! This fic is coming to a close, and I'm sorry to see it ending so soon. But there are still a few questions we want answered, right? What was the potion that Michu's mother used? What effect did it have on her daughter and Jareth? Will I EVER stop being so ambiguous? ^.^
Okay! The voting has been some what of a landslide but to be *fair* we'll wait for the end of the fic (even though I've already started planning a J/S fic). So far, the vote is twenty-one *gulps* to four (sorry, Megan, but it seems that you and I are just gonna have to suffer) for a J/S fic. Those of you, who want a J/M fic, speak now or forever hold your peace! This vote will continue until the end of this fic! Also, I stupidly began a new Labyrinth fic. Check it out! It's called 'Shattered Dreams'. The sequel to this fic will be starting as soon as this one is over.